• ParentSquare Notification System

    ParentSquare logo

    Green Island UFSD is excited to introduce our school community to ParentSquare! ParentSquare is a unified communications platform designed to keep parents and caregivers informed, and create greater engagement and connection with the Heatly school community. Green Island UFSD will send important updates and timely alerts using ParentSquare, through email, text and the ParentSquare app. Phone calls will only be used when necessary. The district will primarily communicate through email and the ParentSquare app, while text messages will only be used for certain communications. Phone calls will be reserved for emergencies and other time sensitive events. 

    All families with a student enrolled at Green Island will automatically receive school news and emergency notifications, as long as you have an accurate email and cell phone number in SchoolTool. If any of your contact information changes at any time, please contact the school so it can be updated in SchoolTool. If your information is not up-to-date, you will not receive notifications from the district.

    Families also have the option to opt-out of ParentSquare using the opt-out form. Please note that you won’t receive any district notifications (except emergency notifications) from Green Island UFSD if you are not signed up for ParentSquare. 

    How Green Island UFSD uses ParentSquare

    Green Island Union Free School District will communicate with parents/guardians about everyday events and emergency situations via ParentSquare. The type of communication will depend on the type of situation.

    Email

    Email is one of the primary forms of communication through ParentSquare. Email will be used to communicate school-level and district-wide news/events that are non-emergency in nature. Emergency alerts will be sent via email in conjunction with other forms of communication.

    ParentSquare App

    The mobile/desktop app is another primary form of communication through ParentSquare. The app will be used for the same purposes as email, in addition to facilitating direct, two-way communication between the district and families. The ParentSquare mobile app is available for download for both iOS and Android devices. 

    Text Messages

    Text messages will be used in emergency situations and for time-sensitive messages. Parents are automatically registered to receive notifications when they enroll their student at Heatly. To opt-out of receiving text messages, click the opt-out link in the first text message you receive from ParentSquare. You can also reply STOP to any subsequent text you receive.

    Similarly, if you previously opted-out of receiving text messages from ParentSquare, you can send START to 66458 to begin receiving text messages again.

    Phone Calls

    Phone calls will only be used in emergency situations.

     

    Resources for Families

    Activation Process

    ParentSquare automatically generates an account for each parent, using their preferred email address and phone number that is currently in our SchoolTool system. We encourage parents to access their accounts so they can download the mobile app and update their preferences on when and how they are notified.

    ParentSquare has a variety of features to streamline district/school communications, such as:

    • Receive messages from the school via email, text or app notification
    • Choose to receive information as it comes or all at once with a daily digest at 6pm
    • Communicate in your preferred language
    • Comment on school postings to engage with your school community
    • Direct message teachers, staff and other parents
    • Participate in group messages
    • Sign up for parent-teacher conferences
    • Send payments, sign forms & permission slips, receive report cards, sign up to volunteer and more all from your desktop or mobile device

    You can activate your ParentSquare account in three ways. The first is to use the activation link sent in an email by ParentSquare. This email was sent to all Heatly families on Sept. 7. If you did not receive the activation email, please email communications@greenisland.org to receive a second activation email. The second option is to sign in to ParentSquare using the contact information (email or phone number) that matches the data in your SchoolTool account.

    The third way to activate your ParentSquare account is by clicking on a link in a post or message. Users who don’t register with the link in the invitation email from ParentSquare will be asked to register for the first time they click on a link to sign in or sign up. For example, if an unregistered parent/guardian receives a post with parent-teacher conference sign ups, clicking the link to sign up for the conference will automatically guide the user through the ParentSquare registration process. 

    Resources:

    Resources for Staff

    Activation Process

    ParentSquare automatically generates an account for each staff member, using their preferred email address and phone number that is currently in our SchoolTool system. Classrooms and class rosters are automatically setup in ParentSquare prior to your first login. We encourage staff members to access their accounts so they can download the mobile app, update their preferences and begin using the platform to communicate with students and their families.  

    ParentSquare has a variety of features to streamline district/school communications such as:

    • Receive messages from the school via email, text or app notification
    • Choose to receive information as it comes or all at once with a daily digest at 6pm
    • Communicate in your preferred language
    • Comment on school postings to engage with your school community
    • Direct message parents and other staff members
    • Create groups
    • Organize class events
    • Schedule parent-teacher conferences
    • Send payments, sign forms, generate permission slips, request volunteers and more all from your desktop or mobile device

    You can activate your ParentSquare account in two ways. The first is to use the activation link sent in an email by ParentSquare. This email was sent to all Heatly staff members on Aug. 24. If you did not receive the activation email, please email communications@greenisland.org to receive a second activation email. The second option is to sign in to ParentSquare using the contact information (email or phone number) that matches the data in your SchoolTool account.

    Resources: